Tragic dad fell to death from flat window

Heartbroken relatives fought back tears as they heard in an inquest the final tragic moments of a Burnley dad who fell to his death from a first floor window.

Mr Gary Billington (37) died when he fell from the window of his flat in Standish Street in the early hours of September 27th.

An inquest at Burnley Coroner’s Court heard how Mr Billington, known to be a heavy drinker, had been found on the street by a passer-by, prompting a police investigation.

Sgt John McNamara, of Burnley Police, told the hearing that third party involvement was ruled out when CCTV was located which captured footage of Mr Billington opening the window and overbalancing before falling to his death.

The officer said: “CCTV footage from a business in Standish Street named Financial Affairs at one point shows a shut window.

“You can then see the window open followed by Mr Billington leaning forward. It is a relatively low window ledge and Mr Billington overbalances and sadly falls.”

Mr Billington’s daughter, Georgia Billington, said her father had moved to the flat in August, 2015, but she had moved out the following January.

The inquest was told that Mr Billington had suffered from depression and was on medication from his doctor.

At one point he was drinking one litre of vodka a day, but had recently come back. However, a post-mortem examination showed that Mr Billington had more than three times the drink drive limit of alcohol in his system at the time of his death.

East Lancashire Coroner Mr Richard Taylor recorded a conclusion of accidental death.

He said: “This was clearly a very very sad accident. Mr Billington had had a lot to drink, overbalanced and sadly could not stop himself from falling.